James R. Mirick sets the record straight on things he cares about

Repeating Viet Nam

I recommend an excellent article published in the journal Foreign Relations, which analyzes the inevitable comparison of the Iraq war with Viet Nam:

Most discussions of U.S. policy in Iraq assume that it should be informed by the lessons of Vietnam. But the conflict in Iraq today is a communal civil war, not a Maoist “people’s war,” and so those lessons are not valid. “Iraqization,” in particular, is likely to make matters worse, not better.

At a minimum, Washington should stop making matters worse. Understanding the war in Iraq as a communal civil war cannot guarantee success, but without this understanding failure is far too likely. Whatever the prospects for peace, they would be considerably better if Washington stopped mistaking Iraq for Vietnam and started seeing it for what it really is.

Its a somewhat long read, but I think a necessary antidote to the simplistic drivel that the Administration’s been spouting about this war since Day One. It points out the lack of imagination on the part of Our Leaders at understanding what they are really up against, and of course emphasizes the necessity of a clear and realistic framework in approaching the problem. Without such a framework you have little hope of engendering a lasting solution.